CES tech show stuffed with gadgets we don't need - or do we?

Today's vision of a smart home has more to do with what's technologically possible than what people really need.

Thus the endless parade of internet-connected wine openers, water bottles, meat thermometers and refrigerators, and a dearth of automation that would clean and fold our laundry, pick up things around the house or assist aging people as their physical strength wanes.

Tinkerers - Tools - CES - Gadget - Show

Not that some tinkerers aren't trying to come up with life-changing tools. The annual CES gadget show, which opened in Las Vegas on Tuesday, is a showcase of the latest innovations from big corporations and tiny startups. Some of these inventions could soon be useful to consumers. Others look outlandishly impractical—or maybe it's too soon to tell.

THE INTERNET OF WHAT?

Book - Uber - Ride - Fridge - Samsung

Want to book an Uber ride from your fridge? Samsung has you covered with one of its latest refrigerator models unveiled in Vegas. Of if you're looking for a water bottle that "helps celebrate when you've met your hydration goals," the internet-connected Hidrate Spark 2.0 has arrived.

You can command a Whirlpool microwave to switch settings with your voice, but per regulations, you still have to walk over to push the button to start it (and of course put food in and out). A meat thermometer made by Apption Labs will send a notification to your phone app when your steak is fully barbecued.

Anyone - Wine - Connoisseur - Argon - Gas

It's unlikely that anyone but the most extreme wine connoisseur will need to track wine-preserving argon gas levels in a half-finished bottle of pinot noir. But a maker of bottle-opening gadgetry, Coravin, lets you do just that. The device needles wine out of a bottle without pulling the cork. What's new is connectivity and an app, so you're alerted when the gadget needs cleaning or a new battery.

All this reflects a cottage industry striving to imbue every last household appliance or...